A Reaper's Heart
by Shen's General
Summary: For centuries, a hidden cult of psuedo-immortals had scoured the earth, collecting souls when their time had come. But when one man is betrayed by his own kind, he is thrust into a fight for survival alongside an woman with her own dark past and a boy that unknowingly possess the power to change everything. Rated M for reasons undisclosed. Posted here and on DeviantArt.
1. Prologue: The Black Nightmare

**Kung Fu Panda**

_**A Reaper's Heart**_

**By Shen's General a.k.a. AwesomeAvian**

**A/N: Good day to all of you. I do apologize for the lack of updates for Me and My Shadow, Second Chance, and By Your Side, but I ran into a bit of computer trouble...namely, I accidentally got a malware virus on the computer and to make matters worse, my USB was plugged into it at that moment it attacked, and the USB had all my stories on it. So, till my uncle checks it out, I am unable to update on them stories. But the good news is...I GOT A LAPTOP! HOO-RAH! And since then, I got an account on DeviantArt, hence my other author's name, AwesomeAvian. If you guys are wondering what this story here is about...it's take a bit of explaining...you see, about a couple of months back, I was busy browsing through the DeviantArt archives, namely through one of my favorite artists, SkitzOpheliac, when I saw this hot picture of an avian couple, an attractive white female avian (I don't know her species) cuddling up to an awesome looking crow (I will give you the link to the picture at the end of this chapter). A day after I had gotten an account on Deviantart, I returned to that picture, favorited it, and wanting to know more about the black crow, I went to his creator's profile, ToppleTheStrange, and I found a sole picture of that crow, which had a bio in it...and thus birthed this story. Before I begin, I should warn you, this story will be rated M for violence, blood, gore, language...and a sex scene or two in the future. Furthermore, this story will be OC-Centric, meaning there will be no Po, Shen, or anyone from the series...possibly, we'll see how this story progress. Now...I shall begin...after these disclaimers.**

**I do not own Kung Fu Panda or it's characters**

**ToppleTheStrange owns the OC that will be making his debut in this chapter**

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Prologue: The Black Nightmare

It was a dark and cold night within the Ironback Mountain Range, even darker as the moon was progressing through the new moon phase, leaving the night more pitch black than before. The howl of the winds echo throughout the passages as no signs of life could be seen for miles...with the sole exception of one location.

Deep in the mountain range lied a fortress, abandoned many years ago by their original inhabitants, who had perished years before in a raid. As of now, the decrepit fort served as a hideout for a group of raiders and bandits, rather infamous within the mountain's province, known as the The Black Yamis.

The Black Yamis had been known to terrorize the mountains for many years, robbing anyone who would dare travel through the mountain range, taking all that they had...and on some occasions, killing the victim, and once in a blue moon, they would venture out of the range to plunder a nearby village, stripping them of all their riches and food, murdering all that opposed them, kidnapping some of them for slave labor, or in cases of the unlucky females, to fulfill the sick sexual urges of the solely male organization.

For years on end, warriors and soldiers alike from all over China had sought to bring down the evil organization and serve swift and merciless justice upon the raiders, but none had been successful in their attempts, defeated by the hands of the bandits, the treacherous conditions of the mountains, and some of them even being scared or paid off by the sinister beings. It had seem that there would be no end to this awful entourage of monsters...at least...not till tonight.

On the eastern side of the fortress, on a small cliff opposite the side of the fortress, lied a dead old tree, derived of any nutrients for the longest time. But the tree was of no importance, but rather a being that stood atop it, as his eyes laid sight upon the fortress, taking in all that the fort itself had to offer, noting the positions of the bandits he could see, and immediately formulating a plan of attack. The unknown being gave a cocky smile as he vanished from atop the tree in a flash, as if he was never there to begin with...

Atop the eastern wall of the fort, a sole red-scaled Komodo Dragon was pacing, wearing an black-armored tassel and a stained muscle shirt, with a halberd in hand, lazily tilting his snout left and right, not really expecting to be stopping any potential invaders that would be crazy enough to attack them, the infamous Black Yamis. Just the thought was absurd these days. The Komodo Dragon let out one long yawn...

***SHINK***

The lizard leap up in shock as he heard what seemed to be roof-tile scraping, as he looked up to the nearby castle tower and saw what seemed to be a black silhouette.

"Who goes there?!" The dragon barked, holding up his halberd.

The shadowed being did not answer, as silence had come over the night once more.

"Hong? If this is one of your damn jokes, I am not laughing!" The reptile snarled, keeping his battle-ready stance as he slowly approached the castle tower.

No response came still from the being, as the lizard frowned in confusion.

"Hong?"

He slowly paced toward the tower, keeping his eyes on the being, still not answering,

"Chan?"

Silence continued, as the dragon's heart began to hasten, his steps towards the tower becoming more hesitant.

"Kim? Lee? Wong? Tatasciore?" He tried calling, the silhouette only remained mute.

The lizard gulped as he took one last step towards the tower, and in that moment, his eyes widen, as he did not recognize the figure, "Who the hell are-" Before he could finish that sentence, the silhouette turn into a blur as he charged at the dragon, silencing him before he could get out a scream.

In the fort's courtyard, two guards, a crocodile and a panda, both donning outfits like the Komodo Dragon, both with sword in hand, were snoozing, snoring loud enough to keep anyone in the vicinity awake except each other, unaware of what happened above where they were positioned...at least, not till something fell onto the paved ground a few feet in front of them in a loud splatter.

***SPLATTER***

"What the fuck?!" The crocodile snapped awake, soon followed by the panda, who also heard the sound, shifting his eyes back and forth in a half-ass attempt to cover up the fact that he was sleeping on the job. As soon as the alarm faded off, the two looked in confusion...when they noticed something in front of them. They approached that 'something' and immediately gasped in horror.

The Komodo Dragon that stood atop the wall was now in a bloodied mess, as his chest was ripped open, starting from his throat and down to his stomach, leaving every organs in the path split open and spewing blood everywhere, and thanks to the fall, his body was now all bent and broken in all the wrong places. His eyes however haunted them, as they were blank with terror...

"Holy shit..." The panda gaped, feeling bile build up in his throat as he struggled to keep it down.

"What the hell...who did this?!" The crocodile whispered in horror.

His question was soon answered, as a loud thud sound was made. The two guards instantly turned towards the origin of the sound, but due to the part of the courtyard being shadowed, only lit by the torches, they only saw a shadowed figure.

"Okay, who are you?!" The crocodile barked at the figure, wielding his sword, soon followed by the panda.

The being did not answer, much to the crocodile's anger.

"Answer me, you mangy motherfu-!"

He did not get the chance to finish that sentence, as suddenly, a halberd was thrown at him, piercing through his mouth and skull, eventually embedding the now dead croc in the opposite wall as blood seep from the mouth and head.

"OH MY GODS!" The panda screamed in horror at his fellow guard's fate, as he returned to face the being, as it approached the panda.

As soon as it stepped into the light, the being's figure was revealed, immediately causing the panda to tremble, and very good reasons too. The intruder was shrouded in black feathers (thus making him a bird...possibly a crow), standing tall at about six feet, the light shining off his yellow beak and his brown eyes, the slight wind blowing through his peculiar head feathers, which were all tipped with red, along with his wings. He was clad in what seemed to be silver armor, and under it, a dark-red sleeveless coat-like robe (with a belt in the middle) and black slacks and wore a necklace laced with bones and a lone skull, and upon his talons were silver-hued shin guards...but what really frightened the bear was the weapon that the bird held in his right hand, as he held what seemed to be a rather big scythe, the blades black as night with blood-red linings...and speaking of blood, one side of the blade was covered in it, as a bit of blood (probably from the Komodo Dragon, no doubt) dripped from it, pattering onto the ground.

The crow looked at the panda with grim indifference as he approached him slowly.

"STAY BACK!" The panda screamed, beyond all reasons afraid, as he held up his sword and backing away slowly, but his order did nothing to stop the avian, as he continued to approach him.

"I SAID STAY BACK! STAY BACK!" The monochrome bear barked repeatedly, his voice growing more and more frightened, "GET AWAY FROM ME!" The bear screamed, as he swung his sword at the crow.

But the crow foresaw the attack as he swiftly swung his scythe around his sword and severs the panda's sword hand. Before the panda could give out a blood-curdling scream, the black bird swung his scythe back, immediately embedding his scythe into the panda's head, instantly killing him.

He withdraw the scythe from the panda's skull, causing the dead guard to fall to the ground in a heap, when suddenly, one of the guards from atop the ramparts, who saw the scene, screamed:

"INTRUDER! WE GOT A INTRUDER!"

A loud horn bellowed throughout the fortress, as the crow only smirked to himself...

"Let the games begin..."

Almost instantly, more bandits made their way to the courtyard, armed with all sorts of bladed weapons, charging at the avian with battle cries. The bird gave a minor scoff as he then swung his scythe, beheading the first bandit that came up to him, blood spurting from the neck as the body fell in a flash.

Two bandits came at him, a wolf and a tiger, swinging their swords in tandem as the crow repelled the swipe of the wolf with a block of his scythe and then sidestepping the tiger's swing, catching his sword arm, and with a sickening crush, he snapped the forearm in two.

The cat only cried in pain as the bird then swung his entire body overhead and hard into the crowd, the cat's body splattering into pieces.

The wolf, horrified, tried another attack upon the bird, but before he could, the avian grasped his throat tightly, and with a flick of a wrist, the wolf's throat was ripped out, bleeding the now-crumpling bandit to death.

Another bandit, an ox wielding an ax, swung at the crow with a heavy swing, only for the crow to sidestep it and swiftly flipping over the ox, and in mid-flip, twisting the ax-wielder's neck with a snap, killing him instantly. As soon as the crow landed, he took the dead bandit's ax and chucked it at a chimp, cleaving him in two.

More and more bandits filed into the courtyard with weapons raised as they surrounded the crow in hope of defeating this killer...but the crow was fiendishly skilled.

With swings of his scythes, he began falling bandits one by one, beheading even more bandits. Then he followed up with slicing other bandits into two pieces.

And using his talons expertly, the crow kicked and smashed them into their skulls and ripping out their brains, while killing others by breaking their necks (either with his bare wings or smashing the handle of the scythe into them).

A rhino charged at him with a hammer in hand, ready to crush the night-colored avian to dust...only for the crow to send his scythe into the rhino's mouth, and with an overhead swing, he ripped the rhino's head and spinal column from the body and smashed the head into the ground.

Another crocodile came from behind him, but the scythe wielder back-kicked him, and grasping with his talons, ripped open his guts, as his intestines fell out in a heap.

A gangly looking panther ran at the crow with a polearm in hand, but the crow only stabbed him with his scythe. Then, the crow swung the scythe over and behind him, smashing a back-attacking ocelot into the ground, and, as more bandits surrounded him, the avian swung the scythe (with the dying panther still impaled on it) around, blasting all of them back and with one big swing, the panther flew off the scythe and was smashed into one of the castle's tower.

The crow let out a huff as he placed the bloodied bladed end of his scythe on the ground, observing with a cocky grin as the remaining few bandits looked on in fear of the sinister looking hawk, as they began to flee.

"Oh no, you bastards aren't getting off that easily." The crow chuckled menacily, as he held out his free wing and screamed, "Umbris Clawdeimos!" His eyes started to glow a fiendish red...

As the last few stragglers tried to flee, one of them, a rabbit, noticed the ground before began to darken. Before the rabbit could enquire what was going on, a black clawed hand burst from the ground suddenly and grabbed the bandit, and began to smash the creature into paste. Two other bandits took note of their comrade, but two more claws burst from the ground and dragged them into the cesspool that they came from and sounds of embodiment were made.

Only one more bandit remained, a boar, tried to make his way to the gate, hoping to escape this horrid nightmare...but alas, his arms were instantly grasped by two overhanging claws, lifting him into the air, where two claws sprouted from the ground and grabbed his legs. The crow, watching from afar, only gave a nod, as the four claws then pulled the boar apart, tearing him into five pieces.

The courtyard was now covered in blood and gore, as the bodies of the crow's opponents were strewn all around him. The crow smiled as he looked towards the central building within the fort and said to himself, his expression growing serious,

"Now, to take down the big kahuna..."

Meanwhile, in what seemed to be what was left of a throne room, with pillars lacing around the room, a spotted yellow-furred jaguar, donning a red vest and tan slacks, was lounging on pillows and blankets (obviously stolen from unfortunate merchants and peddlers), surrounded by a group of women (a vixen, wolf, and a panther), wearing nothing more than mere cloths that covered only their unmentionables barely, with chain collars around their necks, signifying their damned position as sex slaves to the jaguar.

The fact that the jaguar was in the throne room of this forsaken fortress would obviously go to show that the jaguar was the leader of the Black Yamis.

The jaguar was enjoying the lovely sights of beautiful females all around him, sighing in content...when suddenly, he heard a loud bang. The jaguar (and his concubines) looked up at the doors, as screams could be heard from behind them.

"What in gods name is going on out there?!" The jaguar snarled, not pleased that someone was interrupting his 'me-time'.

He would soon get his answers, the doors blast open as a broken corpse of a wolf landed in front of them. The females let out a scream of horror as the jaguar look in shock at the body, as he then look up at the doors...only to gape in horror as a black crow stood there, holding up a struggling bandit with one hand, looking at the jaguar with a look that obviously meant death.

The crow, with a flick of his arm, chucked the bandit into a wall, smashing his head upon collision of the wall, as he looked at the horrified jaguar nonchalantly,

"Lord Xue Yiwang of the Black Yamis?" The crow questioned.

The jaguar, apparently named Xue, didn't answer at first, but when he did, it was quivered with a bit of fear, "W-who wants to know?!"

"That doesn't matter. What does matter is that you had been quite a miscreant..." The crow begins to approach the jaguar, "Murder, plundering, rape, extortion, torture, and trafficking of women. Didn't 'pect any less from the leader of the Black Yamis."

Xue looked at him freaked out, as he backed away, secretly feeling around the pillows for something... "What's it to you?"

"Nothing really...but the boss wanted me to take care of you and your associates...and I did so..." The crow chuckled as he continued walking towards him.

"What?" Xue froze mid-search, "What do you mean, take care of them?"

"Exactly like I said. I took care of your minions...every single one of them..." The crow darkly smirked.

"All of them?" Xue gulped, trying harder than ever to find the thing he was looking for.

"Dead as a doornail. And so will you, if you don't come quietly..." The black avian threatened...before looking at the three concubines, who were eyeing him fearfully, "You ladies best be getting out of here...things might get a bit messy." The females didn't said a word, as they instantly fled the room.

Xue only gritted his teeth in frustration and fear...only to stifle a sigh of relief as he found what he was looking for...

"Okay, man, you got me...I will come with you...no need to get angry..." The jaguar cooly said, as he got to his feet, holding a certain object in his hand.

"That's more like it. Just turn around and no funny business..." The black-feathered ordered, as he slung his scythe on his shoulder.

"Of course..." Xue answered, before giving an evil grin, "As you WISH!" With that last word, he swung around and pulled out a crossbow with a bolt loaded, as he fired directly at the crow.

The bird had no time to dodge, as the bolt struck him hard in the chest. The bird crumpled to his knees in pain...

"Ah-hah! Suck on that, you god-damn maggot!" Xue screamed, "That teaches you to mess with Lord Xue! HAHAHAHAHA!" He let out a maniacal laugh...only to have it overshadowed by an even louder and more maniacal laugh.

Xue turned to the crow...and his eyes widen in horror as the crow rose to his feet, the bolt still stuck in his chest, piercing his silver chestplate, and looked at him with demon-like eyes, "You stupid little shit...was that supposed to hurt?

The jaguar was speechless, horrified beyond all reason, "H-how...how are you still living? Y-you should...you should be..."

"Dead?" The crow finished, as he ripped out the bolt and flung it aside, as he continued to approach Xue, "Yeah, one would think that..."

"What...what dark magic is this? Just what are you?!" Xue stammered.

"Oh, I go by many names...but you could can simply call me...Death..." The crow smarmed with a evil-like grin, as he walked more menacingly towards the jaguar.

"No...no...NO!" Xue screamed as he fired yet another bolt at the crow, but this time, it didn't even phase him, as the crow continued walking. "Get away from me!" He started firing his crossbow like crazy at the bird, but the bolts simply either stuck to the crow like gum or missed him completely.

Soon, the crossbow was out of bolts, causing the jaguar to go into a panic, as he dropped the bow and backed away from him fearfully, but he tripped and fell backwards, but it did not cease his efforts to get away from the crow, who only watched with glee at the cowering feline.

"Umbris Clawillusio!"

The crow suddenly bellowed, as he threw his arm forward, his eyes glowing red once more. Xue only looked on in fright and confusion when a bright-bluish illusion of the crow's reached-out arm burst forward and grabbed the jaguar, holding him up. Xue let out a whimper as the crow pulled back his arm, and in doing so, pulling the jaguar towards him at a great deal of force, only to be captured by the crow's other arm.

Xue gasped as he tried to break free, but the crow's grasp was all but too tight. The jaguar looked at his captor's eyes and only gulped as he saw what seemed to be hellish intent, and did the only thing he could do...beg.

"Please...please don't kill me...I don't wanna die..." The jaguar stammered, completely enveloped with fear, as tears threatened his eyes.

"Kill you? Oh, I would do nothing of the sorts..." The crow chuckled, prompting Xue's whimpering to quiet down a bit...but the crow's eyes began to glow red once more, "For you...I would rather...Reap. Your. Soul..."

The cat's blood ran cold upon the saying of the last three words, as he noticed something growing out of the crow's lower back, looking more like...a second pair of wings? The cat had no time to question such transformation, as he was too scared to do so.

The bird held him up to the sky, as he said in a dark voice, "Look into my eyes and surrender your soul to me..."

Xue only shook his head feverishly, trying to break free, as the crow's beak began to part, "NO! NO! NO! NOOOOOOO!"

Suddenly, something began to flow out of the jaguar's mouth and his eyes in a form of a white-palish wisp and into the beak of the crow at a high rate of speed. The jaguar began to gag, as if he was being suffocated, and his body began to grow pale, his fur turning white. As seconds passed by, the jaguar's body slowly stopped struggling...and soon, the flow of the wisp thin to almost nothing, as it all entered the crow's beak.

As soon as it did, the crow let out a heavy gasp, like one normally would after drinking a lot of water, and looked at the jaguar's body with pity, as the said body faded away to dust, scattered by the draft that blew through the throne room.

The crow let out a heavy sigh as he felt the last of the dust slipped through his wing tips, and his eyes gave one last flicker of red, before returning to a normal brown. He merely placed his scythe against the ground, blade-first.

The crow's eyes surveyed the throne room, as nothing but the silence whisper of the wind could be heard.

"Hmph. Look likes my work here is done." The black avian nodded.

With that said, he let go of his scythe as it suddenly disappeared in a black veil, leaving no trace of its existence whatsoever. The bird turned around and held up his left-wing, and his eyes instantly flash red once more.

Instantly, a black, smoke-like void opened in front of him, as the bird, after giving one last glance to the room behind him, stepped through it. Soon as he did, the void sealed itself back up, leaving no trace of it or the bird.

When daylight comes, and people come to storm the fortress once more to stop the Black Yamis, they will only be met with horror and the stench of the dead corpses that lingered around the fortress, and when they go to find the Lord Xue, the mastermind of the organization, their efforts would be in vain.

No one would know who was it that slain the organization that terrorized their lives...and no one would ever know what had become of Xue. Of course, there were those three freed women that were slaves to the jaguar.

Their testimonies were unreliable for the most part, as they had suffered (as part of the band's sick regiment to maintain their lithe figure) starvation and thirst, but when the people asked who was the one that came and freed them...

They all answered...a crow with four wings...

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**A/N: Well...that's chapter one for you folks. I bet you are wondering who was the crow...well, if you want to figure it out, copy and paste one of the two links below to find a picture of him...or patiently wait for the next chapter, where I will not only reveal his name...but what he really is. As some of you may tell, I was inspired by Kingdom Hearts, Darksiders II, Devil May Cry 4, and Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, as well as Ghost Rider for most of the scenes. ToppleTheStrange, I hope I did your character justice. Here's the link to the crow's pictures on DeviantArt,**

**Type in topplethestrange-dot-deviantart then paste in the following:**

** .com(slash)**art(slash)Hang-Bird-Colored-160293655

********** .**com(slash)art(slash)Hang-Bird-Redesign-Attempt-341279270

**So...READ AND REVIEW!**

**Voice Cast For OCs**

**Currently-unnamed crow - Gregg Berger (****_Jecht_**** from ****_Final Fantasy X_****)**

_**Artworks are deeply appreciated**_


	2. Chapter 1: A Freak WITH A Heart

**A/N: Okay, folks, it is time for chapter two!**

**I do not own Kung Fu Panda or it's characters**

**ToppleTheStrange owns Hang Bird**

**I own all the upcoming OCs in this chapter**

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Chapter One: A Freak WITH A Heart

_Death...the act of dying...the end of life...the total and permanent cessation of all vital functions of an organism...numbers cannot even begin to describe how many times I heard that word._

_When death befalls a person, it is commonly believed that the person would ascend to the afterlife, either being blessed and going to heaven...or being damned to hell...but that is only half true...not all people share those two fates...I'm one of those people..._

In a location undisclosed, blanketed by the moonlight, lied what seemed to be a monastery, surrounded by many of the giant mountains, threatening to swallow the place whole. The monastery was not a small one, as the building itself was big, about three-stories, looking like some sort of a cathedral, proven by the pale blue-stained glasses. The said building is surrounded by what seem to be a giant courtyard and assortments of houses and such. (If you guys are having trouble imagining this, think of the Soul Society in Bleach)

But what was more complexing in this peculiar place was the denizens, as people clad in silver armor, their upper body shrouded in black cloth and their faces covered by a black hood, walking around and doing seemingly normal tasks. On each of their hands, there was an odd insignia, a image of a black skeleton-like dragon, covered in black flames...

_You see...when some of us die, our body...our soul in particular, still remains here on Earth...and then we are branded with this mark on our hand and sent to this place...a place known as..Mayfil, a place for souls that are bound to this world._

_Odd name, I know but hey, I did not find the place. When the souls are sent here, we are greeted by this order known as 'The Darksiders', beings chosed by the gods themselves to help lead us lost souls to become what you mortals know as...The Grim Reaper...or Reaper for short._

_Yeah, I know what you are thinking. Some bony-ass skeleton shrouded in a black coat, wielding a long-handle scythe. Let me tell you one thing, that description does not even come close to what a Reaper truly is._

_We still have our flesh and organs with us...in fact, dead would be the last thing that we are...The Darksiders explained that the gods had chosen to give us selected individuals a second chance at life, and in return, an eternity of servitude as a Reaper, to collect souls of the wicked or those faced with death._

In the midst of the group of houses, there lied a statue of a giant cloaked figure wielding a giant stone scythe. It did not say on the statue whom it was to represent, but it did not matter, for what was truly interesting was the crow that was perched atop it, standing atop his scythe, his expression solemn.

_I should probably introduce myself. My name is Hang Bird...at least, that is what they call me. When we were first accepted into Mayfil, the first thing they did is assign us a new name. I guess it was to compensate for the fact that...we have no recollection of who we were. The moment we were resurrected...our minds become a complete blank. Even I don't remember who I was...all I remember is my name...my actual name..._

_What is it? It doesn't matter...what's the point of a name if you have no memories to associate with it? Nothing. That is what I told myself every day for the last ten years. Three thousand seven hundred and three days and counting, I had lived again as a Grim Reaper, the scourge of the mortal world. feared and hated by many._

The crow let out a deep sigh, as he looked at the moon and the stars, taking in the beauty of the night sky...but his stargazing is interrupted by the silent wind blowing, as one of the many cloaked Reapers stepped out of the dark void he had used previously, looking up to the crow.

"Master Hang Bird, The Lord Of Shadows requests your presence at the Twilight Cathedral. Do not forget to bring Master Black along with you." The Reaper said formally, and as soon as he arrived, he had vanished once more into the void.

Hang Bird only groaned silently, as he leapt off the top of the statue, and with two flips, he landed on the ground with the grace of a swan, and returned his scythe to it's void, as he began to dash his way through the town.

Being a Grim Reaper isn't all bad, though...I mean, first off, you are immortal, incapable of dying. Getting 'killed' still hurts like hell, as you saw with that one prick's stunt with the crossbow.

The crow darted through town, looking left and right as if he was looking for someone, taking a quick right. However, the way he took was a wrong turn, as it lead to a dead end in a form of a tall wall...this did not faze the crow however, as he held out his left wing.

"Umbris Clawillusio!"

His wing was shrouded in a blue wisp, as a mirage-like claw reached out and gripped the top of the wall, and soon as he was within jumping distance, he flung himself over the wall, doing an aerial somersault as he landed on the other side. Hang Bird only gave a cocky chuckle...

_The second perk in being a Reaper is being gifted with the power of the shadows. It varies between Reapers as to what kind of powers they yield...but no matter what the power was...it gave us a sense of superiority, an heightened sense of invincibility (if not the immortality gave us that already)._

Hang Bird kept on running through the town, up till he came to a stop in front of one of the many houses. He walked up to the door and with his fist, he pounded it a couple times, careful enough to not accidentally smash through it (which was quite possible for him). In a matter of seconds, the door opened up, and Hang Bird was caught slightly off guard.

The one that answered the door was a member of the vixen family, an arctic fox if you will, about the same height as Hang Bird, and similar weight too. He had ice blue eyes and black markings above and below his eyes (Similar to Axel's from Kingdom Hearts), and was currently wearing black shorts and a seemingly annoyed face.

But that was not what caught him off guard. What caught him off guard were the two orange female foxes, completely in the nude, that were rubbing their lithe body along the white fox's body while the male had his arms on their backs, while the females trailed kisses down his chest and abdomen.

"Can I help you, Hang Bird?" The vixen asked in an annoyed voice.

_This kid here is Black. I know, a rather odd name for a fox that is white. He had been a Reaper here for eight years, two years after I became one. Unlike me, he is a total slacker. Don't get me wrong, he is very adept in battle and have great dark powers...and he would be a excellent Reaper if his mind was stuck on three things: sleeping, eating, and sex._

_Speaking of sex, you noticed those two very hot vixens? Yeah, you may think that Black must be very good with the ladies...but the thing is...these women are not normal._

_They are what the mortals call succubus, female demons that enjoys fucking (or being fucked) males just to feed their endless sex drive and to feast on their souls when the males are at their weakest. These succubus however are what you say are 'domesticated'...in other words, the Darksiders wiped their mind and took their will and made them into mindless whores that only lived to being mounted by some horny male and nothing more. It is rather demeaning...but the sex, I hear, is really good._

"Black. The boss is calling us in for a meeting." Hang Bird replied, ignoring the lusty females that were almost all over the white fox.

"Oh, again?" Black whined, letting out a groan, "Didn't we just have a meeting two days ago?"

"Quit your bitching, Black. You know the code of The Reapers." The crow growled.

"Yeah, yeah, 'To serve the Lord of Shadows', I only say it about five times a day." Black spat, his left hand reaching down to squeeze one of the female's hindquarters, earning him a squeak.

"Just make yourself decent, Black." Hang Bird ordered, "He will have your neck if you are late again."

"Alright..." Black muttered, as he held out his right paw and pointed inside, "Umbris Telekinecto!" His eyes flickered red, and in a flash, a black long jacket and a pair of slacks were levitated towards him, and with a nod, the black long jacket fell upon his shoulder, the two sides held loosely together by a string (Think of Dante's outfit in Devil May Cry 3), and the slacks went up to his waist by itself via the power.

Then he gave his two females pats on the rear, "Sorry, ladies, daddy has to go to work again. Why don't you two warm yourself up for me till I get back." The two females, being in a slave-driven mind, only giggled as they slipped inside the house.

"My gods, you are such a pig sometimes." Hang Bird growled as he started to walk away towards the catherdral.

"Hey, at least I am making use of them succubus!" Black defended as he followed him, "Look at you, you must had earn the right to keep a harem of them, yet you don't use any of them!"

"Because, Black, I am not a sex-hungry deviant that only think with his dick all the time." Hang Bird muttered, with a sense of condescension.

"Yeah, says the 'Black Nightmare', the guy who slaughters people for fun! I don't under-"

_Yeah, this is how my night usually start out: looking at the night sky as Reapers are incapable of sleep, being called to the Twilight Cathedral for one of them meetings, fetching Black, only to catch him fucking with his succubus concubines, and getting into an argument with him on the way to the meeting. It had became like clockwork._

_But despite Black's perverted and slacker-like attitude, he happens to be my closest friend...or simply close, as I do not want to know what goes on in that guy's head. Either way, I find it comforting to have someone you can trust, because when you're living a new life, friends are hard to come by._

_Oh, and by the way, The Black Nightmare is the name they gave me in Mayfil, for I happened to be one of the best Reapers when it comes to reaping souls...if you had seen the job I did back at the fortress, you would agree with me._

After a few minutes walking and listening to Black's rants about the crow badmouthing him, the two finally arrived at the steps of the Twilight Cathedral...

"And the fact you shoved a razor spinning shuriken inside a guy's throat is proof that you have a blood-lust problem. Blood-lust is a lot worse than just plain lust, man!" Black finished, waiting for Hang Bird to reply.

"Whatever it is you gotta tell yourself, kid." Hang Bird shrugged, as he walked up the steps.

Black only pouted as he followed him, "You know, I hate it when you say that. You sound like you are giving me a win, but you don't mean it!"

"Look, Black. I would like to continue this 'pointless' chat and all, but I have to do something first." Hang Bird said, as the two entered the catherdral.

The two Reapers walked into the first room of the cathedral, which was a giant, wide hall, lit by the moonlight that flickered through the blue-stained windows, with pillars and statues placed strategically around the room and in the middle of the room, was what seemed to be a glass-panned circle, engraved with unique markings. Oddly enough, there was no one except them within this room, as silence graced their ears.

"Aye, I do not like this room...it gives me the creep." Black shivered.

"For Pete's sake, Black, you had been to this room every night ever since you first became a Reaper. You should be quite used to this place by now." Hang Bird said matter-of-factually as they continued their way inwards towards the circle.

"Doesn't make this place any less creepier." The arctic fox replied as he looked around.

"Yeah, yeah..." Hang Bird muttered, as the two soon arrived at the circle, "Let's just get this over with." He then grasped his bone necklace and held the bird skull up and whispered, "Umbris Soulterro..." Suddenly, the eyes of the bird skull began to glow blue and as a familiar wisp began to emanate from the necklace's 'mouth'.

"Say, isn't that Lord Xue's soul?" Black asked, crossing his arm.

"Yes...the fucker gave me a bit of trouble, but it ended all the same." Hang Bird smirked, as the long white trail of the wisp traveled to the center of the circle, bunching up into a orb, glowing a faint light...and with a nod of the beak from the crow, the wisp immediately went downwards into the circle. Instantly, a brilliant light burst through the glass of the circle, revealing below the surface, a whirlpool of wisps much like the one that just joined it, as dying screams and yells of people permeated throughout the room.

Black only grimaced as he covered his ears, not enjoying the sounds while Hang Bird gave a minor scoff. Fortunately for Black, the sounds did not last, for as soon as the sounds had begun, it had immediately silenced, along with the shining light that came with it, leaving the circle the way it was when the two Reapers first entered.

"Shit. I hate the Well of Souls." Black growled.

_The Well of Souls...that is what you had just witnessed. You see, when men and women alike perish...some of their souls become lost on their way to the afterlife, and when they are lost, they are sucked into this glass-topped prison, spending forever and a day in there. To some people, it may seem like an unfair gamble for those who were good in life...but for most of the souls we have here...they belong here._

_You see, as Reapers, we are not just tasked with harvesting souls from those who had passed away due to illnesses and age...we are also given the duty of taking souls away from those who deserve to die. The Black Yamis themselves are an excellent example. Cruel, evil, and very unusual, the Yamis had caused problems for the mortal world, and it wasn't before long that they have someone clean house with them...which is none other than me._

_When Reapers kill a mortal ninety percent of the time, their poor evil souls are immediately expelled into the Well...but for the meager ten percent, like our dear friend Xue, whose souls are twisted beyond all reason...they take a 'little persuasion'. Thus forcing us to use our signature Reaper power, The Soul Expulsion, the ability to harvest one's soul directly and infuse it with our body for the time being, and then returning it to the Well of Souls. It is rather disturbing, but after the first three months of doing it, you get used to it._

Hang Bird, seeing his 'soul depositing' was done, held up his left wing and immediately, a void was opened. He looked back to Black and gave a gesture with his head, "Come on, let's get this meeting over with."

Black gave a shrug as the two went into the void, disappearing into nothingness once again...

Elsewhere, in the higher reaches of the cathedral, there lied a circular chamber, barely lit by torches and the light that shined through the giant window. In the room lied a smaller, circular table, covered in a dark red tablecloth, surrounded by seven chairs, one of them being a bigger one (more like a throne) whose back was to the big window. Seven of the said chairs were occupied by seven different beings, much different from the Reapers that occupied the grounds of Mayfil.

_This place is known as the Death's Hollow, the meeting place for the most prestige of Reapers, the Darksiders, as I mentioned before, the original Reapers. However, over time, for some odd reasons, many of them had disappeared over time, and the need for other Reapers to take up the Darksiders mantle become necessary. That is where me and Black fit in...as we are both Darksiders._

_Darksiders are considered the strongest amongst Reapers, therefore revered by the weaker Reapers. I had only been a Reaper for a year before they had taken notice of me and made me into one of them, while Black was apparently ordained as a Darksider after being a Reaper for three. Many Reapers see being a Darksider as a blessing...I, for one, fail to see the greatness of it._

They only sat in silence, as if they were waiting for something or someone to come along..and they wouldn't have to wait long, as two voids opened up above the two remaining chairs, as Hang Bird dropped out of one of those voids, landing onto his chair softly and upright...while Black simply fell into his chair quite the opposite, landing sideways with a 'oof'.

A few of the other beings gave a chuckle, while Hang Bird only rolled his eyes. It was apparent that the fox never stuck the landing when it came to meetings.

"Ah, Hang Bird, Black, so nice of you to join us...and on time for once." The being perched in the biggest throne of the room said. The being in particular was a barn owl, brown feathers with a white face, scarred on his right eye, and a white underbelly, donning golden eyes, and wearing a long black coat, a white tunic, his chest feathers slightly exposed, and black slacks. His brown feathers were dotted with gray, signifying his old age, "Now that you are here...we can now bring this meeting to order."

_Meet Gabriel Umbris Xiasayius...also known as the Lord of Shadows, current leader of Mayfil, and the remaining Reaper of the original Darksiders. He was one of the first Reapers that found Mayfil, and is currently the oldest Reaper among us. Do not let his old age fool you, he is not a man to toy with. He is trained in all the dark arts, and could easily overpower a hundred Reapers with just a flick of his wing...so they say. But outside of battle, he is just a grouch that looks like someone shoved a pole up his ass._

Black adjusted himself to his seat, giving a huff of annoyance. Gabriel cleared his throat as he continued, "Now, onto business. First off, I would like to commend Hang Bird for his successful reaping of the Black Yamis. I pray that you weren't too hard on them?" The owl asked, although his concern was rather false.

Hang Bird smirked as he crossed his wings, "Course not. Grounded them all into powder. Xue tried to kill me...but you should all know how that ended." A few of the other Darksiders gave a chuckle.

"Indeed...but according to resources...you didn't get them all."

Hang Bird and the others looked at the Reaper that was positioned in the chair to Gabriel's left, a gray wolf with dark gray fur with a light gray fur underbelly that ran up to his lower muzzle and had red eyes. He wore a dark red jacket, with a vest of a similar shade along with black slacks. He had his left hand rested atop a hilt of a decently-sized sword, about as big as Hang Bird's scythe.

"Excuse me?" The crow asked incredulously.

"You heard me...weren't there those three little whores that Xue had imprisoned? You let them lived..."

_This asshole here...is Deimos Grimm, Gabriel's second in command, not to mention a giant ass-kisser. A particular favorite of Gabriel, he makes it a habit to let everyone know who Gabriel preferred, and even go on to rub in the weaker Reapers' face as to who was a Darksider. He is also a sex-hungry pig like Black...except worse...much worse. Yeah, you may say that he and I don't see eye to eye...or go in the same room together. Did I mention that he is a psycho?_

"For your information, Deimos, they were slaves to Lord Xue. They were forced to perform sexual favors for the bastard. They were not at fault for their involvement with the Yamis, and I only granted them their freedom." Hang Bird defended.

"Yes, but in the progress, you were seen by them just before you left." Deimos shot back, "In your true Reaper form."

Ah yes, our true Reaper form...it is nothing special really. When we become Reapers, we are gifted with a pair of black wings, symbolism of the Grim Reaper's title as the Angel of Death. They only revealed themselves when we want them to or when we are performing the Soul Expulsion.

"In my defense, no one believed the girls when they told the others. They said they saw a 'crow with four wings'. I was fine." Hang Bird rebutted.

"No. You were lucky." A Darksider that was seated to the right of Gabriel corrected. a black panther with an eye patch over his right eye, which was scarred, and a red left eye. He wore what seemed to look like an old imperial soldier uniform, with a red bandana.

_Caius Alder, the other right-hand man of Gabriel. Fortunately, he is not as much of a dick compared to Deimos...but instead, he is rather...what's the word, dark? He is very pessimistic and a douche at time. He is a acclaimed sharpshooter, as according to him, he was a soldier in his past life...although others don't seem to believe him. Also a psycho._

"Give Hang a break, Caius!" Black defended, joining in on the argument, "No one think Reapers exist, end of story! If you ask me, I find it rather stupid that we have to hide here in Mayfil."

The room immediately went silent when Black said those last words, as Gabriel eyed Black with a vicious glare. It was not uncommon that Black would say something that would piss everyone off, but when Black gets on the topic of why they must hide away from the public, it angers the Lord of Shadows and the other Reapers to no end.

"Black...how many times must we repeat this pointless drabble? You know why we cannnot be one with the mortals!" Gabriel barked.

"Yes, if they knew who we were, we would be hunted." Caius added.

"So what?" The fox rebutted, "We are Reapers gifted with supernatural powers. If someone tried to kill us, we could easily destroy them without blinking!"

"You wrong. Fox make job harder."

Black only growled as he eyed the Reaper between him and Caius, which was a bull, much bigger than him...in fact, he was the biggest in the room. He wore a complete suit of heavy metallic armor, colored in a shade of dark gray, and wearing a helm that covered his entire face, breathing through the minor slits that was located around the mouth, and upon the forehead of the helm, was a X-shaped emblem. The only way you could tell that he was a bull was through the big horns that were sticking out of the helm.

"We no kill mortals. It break code."

"What?!" Black groaned, as he then turned to face the other Reaper that was between Hang Bird and Deimos. It was yet another bull, like the one next to him, except his horns were smaller and the emblem on his helm was more of a +-shape. Everything else was the same.

_The two look-alikes on the opposite sides are Goliath and Achilles Hellstrom, twin brothers, and possibly the biggest Reapers there ever were. I know it is hard to tell the difference between the two, but it is quite simple: X-shape emblem, big horns is Goliath, +-shape, little horns's Achilles. As you may expect, they are strong, definition of tempered warriors. But they are dumb as...correction, dumber than rocks. Did I mention that they too are psychos?_

"Achilles's right, Black. We should not risk our livelihood just to fulfill your attention whore tendencies!" Caius argued.

"Attention whore?! Well, damn me for not wanting to hide away like a bunch of disease-ridden rats!" Black snarled, "Aren't we mortals like them?"

"WE ARE NOT MORTALS!" Deimos screamed, shocking everyone, "WE ARE MORE THAN THOSE PATHETIC BEINGS WILL EVER BE!"

"Get the hell off your high horse, Deimos!" Hang Bird joined in, "You forget that you were once one before you died. In fact, we all were!"

"Yeah...except one of us held onto his weak-mortal beliefs!" Deimos spat back.

"What is that suppose to mean?!" The crow snarled, nearly getting out of his seat.

"Wolf mean you have heart. Weak organ." Goliath answered for him, causing Hang Bird's glare to darken.

"Oh, not this again..." Black muttered, slapping his forehad.

_*Sigh* The heart...the beating single organ that keeps us living, while giving us the sense of what it is like to be normal. Unfortunately, when one dies and become a Reaper...they lose that...their heart dissipates to nothingness, leaving only a black hollow hole. Without a heart, the Reapers became unbounded by their own emotions, forgetting all feelings they had as a mortal, and become ultimate hunters of the souls, and no one would know the defintion of normalcy...no one...except me._

_I still had my heart...beating inside of me. It was one of the greatest mysteries; no Reaper in all their time had ever had a heart before I did. It did not prevent me from becoming a Reaper, no, but...it created some unsavory opinion of me. You see, in Mayfil, Reapers usually don't like being reminded of their past life, and they seem to be better off without a heart...but when they see me...they loath me. I am hated by Reapers all around me, even my fellow Darksiders look down on me...the only one that didn't hate me was Black...although people don't like him either. It sucks...but what can you do?_

"Whether I have a heart or not doesn't change the fact that I am a Reaper!" Hang Bird yelled, slamming his wings down on the table.

"Oh please, you may have our wings...but you will never be one of us..." Deimos chuckled menacingly, prompting Hang Bird to growl in anger as he was about to yell at him, but Black beat him to it.

"Oh fuck you, Deimos!" Black screamed.

"FUCK YOU!" Deimos retaliated, snarling at Black.

"FUCK YOU!" Black spat back.

"FUCK YOU!" Caius joined in.

"FUCK YOU TOO!" Black roared at him.

"ENOUGH!" Gabriel bellowed, slamming his wings down on the table, "We had strayed far from topic! Let's drop all this nonsense about hearts and hiding away, it solves and changes nothing!"

Black gave a scoff as he sat back down, along with Deimos and Caius, as Hang Bird himself glared at the two.

"Now, back onto the previous discussion, Hang Bird, excellent work on your Reaping...but be more vigilant next time." Gabriel stated, earning a scoff from the crow. "To continue the meeting...well, we have a big night tonight. You are all aware of the Skull Raptors in the Xu Jiong district, right?"

"You mean Black Yamis' equal in crime?" Black asked incredulously.

"Yes." Gabriel nodded, "Well, there is a large gathering of them tonight, and given their strong presence of darkness...that's a lot of souls to be reaped..."

"Well, bring it on then!" Black stood up, "Hang Bird and I can make quick work of them!"

"Don't you just mean Hang Bird?" Deimos smarmed, "Unlike our 'heart-beating' feathered friend, you usually sit on your ass while he does all the work."

"Why you mangy..." The fox growled before Gabriel interrupted,

"Black. As much as I admire your sickly sense of enthusiasm, I'm afraid Caius and the Hellstrom brothers shall be doing the reaping tonight." Black drooped in disappointment, while Hang Bird only sighed in relief (he was in no mood to do mass-murders two nights in a row). "However, I do have a special job for the two of you."

"Special job?" Hang Bird asked, "When do you have special jobs for us?"

Gabriel ignored Hang Bird's quip as he continued, "Tonight, I shall be dispatching you two to a small town within the Gongmen Province. There you will be looking for your target." The owl flicks his right wing, as a piece of parchment appear in a flame in front of Hang Bird.

The crow took the parchment in hand and looked at it, "This is the target?"

"Yes, hopefully it will not be much trouble for a Reaper of your caliber." Gabriel explained.

Black leaned over to Hang Bird to look at the parchment, and immediately frowned, "A kid? You are sending us after...a kid?" He asked incredulously, as if this was some sort of sick joke.

"A young teenager to be exact. He is Pawntoe Feng, commonly referred as Pawn. A Peregrine Falcon, hails from the small town of Sasuno." Gabriel explained.

Black looked at him oddly, "But why are you sending us after him?! He doesn't look like a bad kid...nor does he look old."

"Black does have a point, Xiasayius." Hang Bird agreed, "Why do you want the soul of a child?"

"That is none of your concern." Gabriel coldly remarked.

"Excuse me? Do not forget that we are Darksiders as well, Gabriel!" Hang Bird snapped, "I have the right to know why we are wasting our time on a kid!"

"I am your master, Hang Bird. You do as I command! It is best that you remember your place! Now, you two are to find this boy and soul expel his soul...or would you rather spend the next year or so on guard duty?!" The owl growled, seething at his fellow avian, who only returned it with his own. Black, who was sitting next to the crow, only gulped as he placed his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"We understand completely, master..." Black said in a unnaturally happy voice, as he gave a look to the crow which said 'follow me', as the crow continued glaring at the owl but getting up from his seat. "Me and Hang will get right on it!" With that, Black's eyes glowed red as a void opened up, "When we get back, that soul will be good as reaped! So long!" He finished with a nervous chuckle, as he then wrapped his arm around Hang Bird (much to his surprise) and lead him through the void.

The other Darksiders only looked with cold glares as the two disappeared through the void, as they then turned to Gabriel, whose glare still lingered.

"Master...how long do you intend on having that crow around?" Deimos asked.

"Yes, he is starting to get suspicious of these reapings you been tasking him with." Caius agreed.

"Crow must go." Goliath stated.

"Birdie must perish." Achilles chimed in.

"Now, now, my fellow comrades. I know you all loath Hang Bird with a passion...but we cannot act on our hate...not yet at least, not when we are close..." Gabriel explained.

"But sir, do you really think that the bird would actually go through with it?" The wolf questioned.

"I do not know, but Hang Bird, despite his rebellious attitude, is loyal. He will reap that boy's soul..."

"And if he doesn't?" Deimos replied, eyebrow raised.

Gabriel looked to his right-hand man with a grin that you would find only in a horrific nightmare, "Well then...we shall proceed to plan B."

Meanwhile, Hang Bird and Black just arrived out of the cathedral, walking down the steps, as the crow was now fuming. Black tried to keep up with him.

"Hang Bird, are you trying to get yourself killed? Because I am certain Gabriel will find a way to do it." The fox said with concern.

"Come on, Black, when does the Lord have us reap souls of children? Even you must find this a bit strange." Hang Bird spat back, as the two were walking away from the cathedral.

"I do, but who I am to question the fucking Lord of Shadows?" Black defended.

"First off, a guy with guts..." The crow quipped.

"Look, I know it's stupid that we have to do something like this, but he is running the show around here, and we have to do what he said." Black explained, "Even I know that. If he want me to pull a tooth, I would do it. If he wanted me to gouge my eye out, I would do that too. If he wanted me to send a hook through my chest, I would do it. Hell, if he wanted me to put my head in a box of filling water, I would-"

"I get the point, Black. You would jump off a cliff." Hang Bird declared, "But unlike those shit-licking bastards back there, I have a mind of my own..." The crow frowned, "Not to mention...a heart..."

Black gave a sympathetic expression, as they stopped in the middle of the town "Come on, Hang, I know it goes against your 'morals' and all, but things are what they are."

Hang Bird remained silent as he let out a deep sigh, "I guess you are right."

"Course I am." Black smiled, "Now let's get this job over with!"

The crow rolled his eyes at the fox's attitude, as he summoned a void with his wing, and when the two approached it, Hang Bird gave one last gaze to Black and said, "Oh and this time, no fucking the bar maid while I do the work." With that, he walked into the void as Black let out a laugh.

"Ohohoho, fucking the bar maid..." Black chuckled...before he stop suddenly, as he followed him, "What? You're serious?"

And so the two Reapers set off on what would seem like an simple mission...

_But little did I know that this mission would change my life...__**forever**__._

* * *

**A/N: Well, what do you guys think? Not so bad if I do say so myself. First off, yes, I based all the Reapers off of Organization XIII, add a bit of Darksiders elements...and I might had looted a concept from the movie RIPD (I know that movie might had suck). And we meet six brand new OCs that I had created. Gabriel Xiasayius is based off an OC I had made for King of 2211's fic 'The Dragon' and Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep's Xehanort, Deimos Grimm is based off DMC4's Dante, Caius Alder is based off Braig/Xigbar, the Hellstrom Brothers are based on a mix of Darknuts of Legend of Zelda's Twilight Princess and War from Darksiders, Black was inspired by Kingdom Heart's Axel and DMC3's Dante. And yes, the crow's name is Hang Bird. I hoped you like all the exposition...and I hope I hadn't perturb anyone with the whole succubus sex slave thing. READ AND REVIEW!**

**Voice Cast For OCs**

**Hang Bird - Gregg Berger (****_Jecht_**** from ****_Final Fantasy X_****)**

**Black - Quinton Flynn (****_Axel_**** from ****_Kingdom Heart series_****)**

**Gabriel Xiasayius - Leonard Nimoy (****_Lord Xehanort_**** from ****_Kingdom Hearts series_****)**

**Deimos Grimm - Reuben Langdon (****_Dante_**** from****_ Devil May Cry series (namely DMC4)_****)**

**Caius Alder - Troy Baker (****_Snow Villiers_**** from ****_Final Fantasy XIII series_****)**

**Goliath & Achilles Hellstrom - Jim Cummings (****_Tigger_**** from ****_Winnie The Pooh/Many Disney installments_****)**

**_Artworks are deeply appreciated_**


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